Fuel cells convert the chemical energy of fuel into electrical energy. A polymer electrolyte fuel cell is a type of fuel cell that has a simple design and 1) uses a fuel such as hydrogen, dimethyl ether, methanol, ethanol, etc. that can be easily delivered to the cell, 2) has cation exchange membranes that conduct hydrogen ions (i.e. protons), 3) has an electrocatalyst made from precious metals (Pt, for example), and 4) operates under acidic conditions. Under these conditions, the reduction of oxygen and/or the oxidation of the fuel are relatively slow. By contrast, an alkaline fuel cell is a type of fuel cell that operates under alkaline conditions and can make use of electrocatalysts made from base metals (i.e. non-precious metals) that are far less expensive then precious metals. Moreover, the base metal electrocatalysts tend to have a high oxygen reduction reaction activity under alkaline conditions. A solid alkaline fuel cell is a type of alkaline fuel cell that makes use of solid electrolytes instead of liquid electrolytes. A solid alkaline fuel cell has a simple design (e.g. no liquid electrolyte and hence no liquid electrolyte circulation system needed), and a smaller volume compared to liquid electrolyte based fuel cells. The solid electrolyte is less corrosive than a liquid electrolyte. Some of the current disadvantages of solid alkaline fuel cells relate to their membranes, which are anion conducting membranes that have relatively low anion conductivities, poor mechanical properties, and low stability under high pH alkaline environments.
Poly(arylene) anion exchange membranes made from poly(arylene) anion exchange polymer electrolytes are reported to have excellent ion conductivity, mechanical strength, and processibility. A poly(arylene) anion exchange membrane reported by Zschocke et al. in “Novel ion exchange membranes based on an aromatic polyethersulfone” Journal of Membrane Science, vol. 22 (1985), pp. 325-332, had the following repeating structure that includes ether linkages, sulfone linkages, and cationic alkylammonium moieties attached to arylene groups of the polymer chain:

Sata et al. in “Change of anion exchange membranes in an aqueous sodium hydroxide solution at high temperature,” Journal of Membrane Science, vol. 112 (1996) pp. 161-170, reported that membranes with the above repeating structure became brittle after immersion in 6.0 N sodium hydroxide solution at 80° C.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,008,361 discloses preparation ether-based poly(arylene) membranes which are prepared by forming a chloromethylated polymer, converting the chloromethylated polymer to an aminated polymer, and then alkylating the aminated polymer to a quaternary ammonium polymer and then casting the quaternary ammonium polymer into a film for a membrane. The chemical stability of these ether-based membranes has been reported to be poor under high pH environments, and the mechanical strength of these materials gradually deteriorated. Fujimoto et al. in “Backbone stability of quaternized polyaromatics for alkaline membrane fuel cells” Journal of Membrane Science, vol. 423-424 (2012), pp. 438-449 indicated that ether cleavage of benzyl ammonium group occurs under high pH conditions before possible cation degradation.